In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, I, the inventor, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. I also grow a lesser number of open pollinated seeds of each of these fruits, usually to capture recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of nectarine tree, which has been denominated varietally as ‘Pearlicious VII’.
The present variety was hybridized by me in 2001 as a first generation cross using ‘June Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,360) nectarine as the selected seed parent and an unnamed yellow flesh nectarine designated by code number ‘1P1152’ (unpatented) as the selected pollen parent. The fruit of this cross was gathered in the spring of 2001, and the seeds were removed from the fruit, germinated, stratified, and grown as seedlings on their own root in my greenhouse. Upon reaching dormancy that winter, the seedlings were transplanted as a group to a cultivated area of my experimental orchard located near Le Grand, Calif., in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). During the fruit evaluation season of 2005 I selected the present variety as a single tree from the group of seedlings described above. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of nectarine tree, I asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of ‘Nemaguard’ (unpatented) rootstock upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its seed parent, ‘June Pearl’ nectarine (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,360) by producing nectarines that are mostly red in skin color, white in flesh color, clingstone in type, firm in texture, but is distinguished therefrom by producing fruit that is larger in size, sweeter in flavor, more symmetrical and globose in shape, and that matures about fourteen days later.
The present variety is similar to its pollen parent, ‘1P1152’ nectarine by producing fruit that is clingstone in type, nearly full red in skin color, and large in size, but is quite distinguished therefrom by being white in flesh color instead of yellow, by being larger in size, and by maturing about thirty days later.
The present variety is most similar to ‘Candy Pearl’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 14,249) nectarine by producing nectarines that are white in flesh color, clingstone in type, firm in texture, large in size, full red in skin color, and mature in early July, but is distinguished therefrom by blooming earlier, by requiring less chilling hours, by having globose instead of reniform leaf glands, and by producing fruit that has a bitter instead of sweet kernel, that is more symmetrical, and that is sweeter and lightly acidic instead of sub-acidic in flavor.